A conventional image reader electrically communicated with a POS terminal, i.e., Point of Sales terminal, optically captures image of a code symbol on a label attached to a commodity or an object image partly and/or totally showing a commodity through an opening provided to a housing of the image reader. The image reader decodes the captured image to generate code information relating to the code symbol, e.g., a commodity code, or extracts a feature amount from the captured object image. The code symbol image or the object image is captured by an image detector, e.g., CCD sensor (Charge Coupled Device sensor), provided in the image reader.
The opening in the image reader is covered with a transparent flat plate with a permeability, e.g., glass, resin and the like, to prevent foreign matters or dust from being stuck to the image detector.
The image reader includes a lighting device to illuminate an image reading area in which the label with a code symbol or an object is held to capture the image thereof. The image reading area is allocated for the image detector to receive light reflected by the code symbol or the object brought therein. The lighting device includes an LED (Light Emitting Diode). A part of Light, emitted by the lighting device, which is reflected by the transparent plate, becomes a stray light. To prevent the stray light from arriving at the image detector, the lighting device is disposed adjacent to an edge of the transparent plate in the conventional image reader.